Concert Pianist

My debut recording, Twelve Nocturnes and a Waltz, has just received a wonderful, featured review from Gramophone Magazine (Feb. 2011):

Robert Henry’s lyricism hits the mark

Pianist Robert Henry appears to be an artist whose strong points are sensitivity and lyricism, and this mostly Nocturnes programme certainly reveals these traits to strong advantage. Inner voices decisively sing out and project in the two Chopin Op 62 Nocturnes, although, by contrast, Op 27 No 2, the Respighi Notturno and the ubiquitous Liszt A-flat Liebestraume have more than a few muffled, overpedalled moments. Henry’s cogent shaping of the Grieg Op 54 No 4 Nocturne’s bass lines reinforce this music’s often ignored backbone, while the two Faure Nocturnes boast welcome dynamism and power. Henry is right at home in the Liebermann and Stanchinsky Nocturnes, both of which feature turbulent middle sections that best reveal each composer’s individual voice. Given Henry’s excellence elsewhere, I was surprised by the Field A major Nocturne’s relatively wooden and prosaic interpretation. However, Henry saves his most rapturous and texturally refined playing for his own transcription of Chet Atkins’s Waltz for the Lonely. If you’ve always wanted to know what “Nashville Meets Godowsky” sounds like, savour this absolutely enchanting track, as I did about a dozen times before writing this review! — Jed Distler